As I reflect in the celebration of the risen King on Easter,
I am so very thankful for what Jesus did for me on Calvary. He took my place!
He took the nails for me, He took the beating for me, and He carried my sin and
shame… ALL for me!!!! Why me… Who am I?
I don’t deserve it! He did it all so I could be FREE! Yes free! Free from all
sin and shame, free from all bondage, free…free…free….
Why is
freedom celebration displayed on life’s stage on that faithful Sunday, yet people
go home from a resurrection Sunday and are still bound on the Monday?
This question has many answers, but there are two I want to
address. Indeed the scripture is clear about the Delivering Power of Jesus.
John 8:36 - If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye
shall be free indeed.
Let’s be clear about this.. Jesus wants you to be free. The
reason we celebrate Easter is that Jesus conquered the death and the grave so
that we could be free!
I go back to the age old question. Why are Christ’s children
sitting on the powerless pews still bound with the same old problems? Has the
church lost its power? NO! Has the Pulpit waivered in power? NO! Has the Word of God diminished in power? NO!
So what has?
The simple answer is humanity… Let me explain the complicated
answer to a simple question.
The moment Jesus rose from the grave, there was an echo of
deliverance that resounded throughout the ages to come! I am free, so therefore
you can be free! In you is the power to overcome the first day of bondage and
stay victorious.
Your enemy has it right. He knows exactly what to use to
bring you back into captivity. There are two weapons he uses. The first deals
with yourself and the second deals with others.
The first is self-condemnation! This is a
very important and vital tool for the enemy! Once you begin to condemn yourself
and think you can’t make the mark because of your failure. Guess what? You
drift like a ship without a sail back into the former life. A life of
bondage. This time you are captive to
condemnation! You can never get away from the past; you dwell on it, live in it
until it consumes you! The enemy’s drug is a steady and increasing dose of
subtle deception! Don’t be free from sin to be bound again.
Romans 8:1 - There is therefore now no condemnation to them
which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Replace
self-condemnation with self-discernment!
You are Christ’s child. You sought forgiveness, and he
adequately responded with deliverance. Speak to your enemy with those
triumphant words!
Luke 4:8 - And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is
written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
You are free because Christ says you are free! It’s Monday,
and yes you are still free even when the temper comes with self-condemnation
and his only purpose is for you to be bound!
The second is others! It is no coincidence that Jesus
points out the church in scripture. You say, “can the church stand in the way?”
Unfortunately, yes! The enemy can use the very elect to derail the
brokenhearted? Again, others are the very commodity the enemy uses that
delivers rich returns.
You see scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken
in a fault and displayed it for everyone to see. Let’s stone the guilty! Let’s parade her faults for everyone
to see! Let’s cast her out by stoning her and use the law to accomplish it! We
don’t want her, we don’t need her, and we can do without her! That was the
mentality of the church at that time!
Child of God, at times you will need to do what Jesus did and
shake the dust from off your sandals… in other words, your enemy who comes to
kill, steal, and destroy will at times use others to ridicule, accuse, tear
down and try to destroy your progress in Jesus!
Again, let’s use the One whose motives and agenda can’t be
questioned!
John 8:11 - And Jesus
said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more. The
scripture reveals that her failure didn't define her, but rather revealed Jesus
by way of her enemy! You see,
your failure isn't a destination, but an event. It’s not your identity, because
the Potter hath power over the clay.
It’s the day after Easter and you are blazing toward
Pentecost! It’s Monday! You are still FREE! Even when self-condemnation screams
in your ears, in your dreams, at work, in a group or all alone, Its Monday! You
still have Resurrection power available to you!
It’s the day after Easter and you are heading to the miraculous
outpouring of His Holy Spirit! It’s Monday! You are still FREE! Even when your
enemy uses his prized commodity to be a stumbling block, even when those who
proclaim to be in the church judge you and try to stone you with rocks of
condemnation;
REMEMBER, Jesus doesn’t condemn you! He used a lying, cursing
Peter and made him the “rock”. He used a
murderous Saul to be the messenger to the Gentile nation!
All it takes to be truly changed is one interaction with
Jesus! All else is just noise!
It’s Monday and you are still FREE! You don’t have to be the
statistic that says people will fall back into previous bad habits and live a
defeated life. It’s Monday!
Child of God, It's Monday! Church it's Monday!
Instead of casting stones, let’s be the ROCK they can stand
upon!
www.royalwood.cc
Dan Castleberry serves on the Pastoral ministry team and leads various ministries at Royalwood. He is married to Robyn and has three beautiful daughters. You can follow Dan on Twitter
There are no superstars in the Kingdom of God. If Jesus is the center there is no room for you or I to be. Our goal as believers is to individually and collectively glorify Jesus through our lives. Whether collaborating on a new idea, writing a song, launching a community initiative, developing a sermon, creating a new fashion trend, _____________________(Fill in the blank), there is power in collaboration. You can do exponentially more collectively than you can do individually. 
